Jews and Palestinians in the Late Ottoman Era, 1908-1914 - (Edinburgh Studies on the Ottoman Empire) by Louis A Fishman (Paperback)

About the Book

Uncovering a history buried by different nationalist narratives (Jewish, Israeli, Arab and Palestinian) this book looks at how the late Ottoman era set the stage for the on-going Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Book Synopsis

Uncovering a history buried by different nationalist narratives (Jewish, Israeli, Arab and Palestinian) this book looks at how the late Ottoman era set the stage for the on-going Palestinian-Israeli conflict. It presents an innovative analysis of the struggle in its first years, when Palestine was still an integral part of the Ottoman Empire. And it argues that in the late Ottoman era, Jews and Palestinians were already locked in conflict: the new freedoms introduced by the Young Turk Constitutional Revolution exacerbated divisions (rather than serving as a unifying factor). Offering an integrative approach, it considers both communities, together and separately, in order to provide a more sophisticated narrative of how the conflict unfolded in its first years.

From the Back Cover

Looks at how Jews and Palestinians set out to 'claim the homeland' during the late Ottoman era Uncovering a recent history buried by competing nationalist narratives (Jewish, Arab and Palestinian) this book looks at how the late Ottoman era set the stage for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that has lasted for over a century. It seeks to change how we understand the conflict by exploring the period before World War One: a time when a unique sense of Palestinian identity emerged, and many Zionists imagined a Jewish national home within an Ottoman framework. Further, it argues that in the late Ottoman era Jews and Palestinians were already locked in conflict. The new freedoms introduced by the post-1908 Young Turk Constitutional Revolution exacerbated divisions, rather than serving as a unifying factor. Offering an integrative approach, it considers both communities, together and separately, in order to provide a sophisticated narrative of how the conflict unfolded in its first years. Key Features - Explores internal Jewish politics in the Yishuv and the greater Ottoman Empire - Places Palestinians within the greater Arab and regional context - Rethinks both Palestinian and Jewish nationalism to transform our understanding of the roots of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict - Based on documents in Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, Hebrew and French Louis A. Fishman is an Assistant Professor at Brooklyn College, City University of New York.

Review Quotes

[...] a solid work based on a variety of sources and providing excellent analyses [...]. Reading Fishman in the light of current events helps to better understand the frustration of the Palestinians and one of the colonial aspects of Zionism.--Roberto Mazza, University of Limerick "Contemporary Levant Vol. 5, Issue 2"

[...] there is no one better able to tell this inter-twined history than Fishman, who is fluent in Hebrew, Arabic, and Turkish and whose scholarly craftsmanship has made him an authoritative historian of the late Ottoman Empire. Fishman's deep archival research places readers on the ground with the Jews and Palestinians struggling for power and resources as they contested with one another for their place in the imperial domain. [...] Fishman's careful research and reasoned analysis offer an important story about a world still largely fixed and determined by endlessly immutable and only occasionally crossed lines.--Donna Robinson Divine, Smith College "Bustan: The Middle East Book Review, 2021, Vol. 12, No. 1"

Louis Fishman's book offers a gripping account of the emergence of Palestinian and Zionist identities in the final decades of the Ottoman Empire. Deeply researched and nuanced in its understanding of the evolution of both of these communities and of how their emergence helped produce the conflict of subsequent years, this book is essential reading for anyone wanting a full picture of why that conflict is so intractable.-- "Rashid Khalidi, Edward Said Professor of Arab Studies, Columbia University"

About the Author

Louis A. Fishman is an associate professor at Brooklyn College, City University of New York. He works on Ottoman Palestine and has a special interest in Ottoman politics during the Young Turk period. He also writes on Turkish, Israeli and Palestinian affairs. He divides his time between New York, Istanbul and Tel Aviv.